Broken Wings of Freedom
by Meyrin360
Summary: Levi is listed MIA after an expedition; unable to find closure, Eren blames himself for his corporal's apparent death. (I suck at summaries.) Rated T for violence, blood, coarse language
1. Broken Wings of Freedom

**Disclaimer**:I do not own Shingeki no Kyojin or the characters

**Rated T for mild violence. Will contain coarse language**

**Summary:** Levi is listed MIA after an expedition; unable to find closure, Eren blames himself for his corporal's apparent death.

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Chapter 1 ~ Broken Wings of Freedom

The morning sun illuminated the land for the new day, today would be the 58th expedition, a simple expedition enough. The objective was only to clear a path of Titans, extermination was a better word to use though. Eren sat on his bed as he starred at the picture he had taken with the Levi squad on the second week together, Petra had been bugging him that they should get a squad picture for memories. She was so persistent but he could not say no, definatly not to Petra; she was so nice and sweet, it was no wonder that the corporal liked her a lot.

Eren studied the faces he would never see again, all of them were dead because of his poorly made decision. Even though the corporal had told him several times that no one could have predicted the outcome and he should not dwell on the deaths, he still could not accept it. They should not have died the way they did.

He stood up, placed the picture on his bed taking a last look at his deceased comrades as his eyes trailed onto his corporal. Always serious and emotionless, however with the little time he spend with him, Eren learned that this was simply just a façade, Levi was a gentle heart and hurt easily but was just good at hiding it.

"Eren, it's time."

He quickly bolted his eyes off the picture and turned towards the voice of Mikasa who was standing under the door frame. The time to go back into the fields of hell, this time will be different; he would not let his friends die, with Annie frozen in that Crystal, they only would have to keep an eye out for aberrant types.

Eren joined Mikasa as they walked through the empty hallway, quiet as always; she would often ask him questions on how he felt at the moment. That always drive him nuts, he appreciated the concerns she may have for his well-being but he was now a soldier, he was capable of taking care of himself. As they exited the castle and entered the courtyard, they were quickly joined by Armin as they walked towards the rest of the Scouts.

He eyed at the faces, searching for one in particular; since their squad had practically been wiped out, Eren had no idea if he would still be with Levi or if the squad would be formed anew. His corporal had not said a word about that when he had told Eren about the upcoming expedition.

"Eren, get on your horse."

Levi already mounted on his horse hands Eren the reins to his horse, his corporal had already readied his horse for him, and that was a first but considering he was kind of late, he would have to shape up fast.

"Corporal allows me to accompany you in this expedition." Mikasa quickly asks as she does a strong salute, her fist firmly clenched over her heart as she looks up to meet the smaller man's stare.

"That's not up to me, stick with Erwin's formation." Sharp and direct as usual from the corporal. Eren mounted his horse and looked at his two childhood friends before riding off with his squad leader. Mikasa was disappointed, but she had to follow Erwin's orders, the formations were made for a reason.

Eren followed Levi closely, never to fall back two horses like he had been told before when he had first joined. This time Eren was surprised to see that they were going to be up front along Erwin, Mike and Hanji but once in Titan territory, they probably will split up into small groups as they kill the giants.

The Scouts on Erwin's orders begin to make their advancement to the Karanese District, like usual the people come out to greet them; to wish them luck on their expedition and to kick some Titan ass but Eren knew all too well how they would be received on their return when some would not return.

"Don't take any unnecessary risk unless you are certain to come out of it alive." Levi said without looking at Eren. Levi did not have to tell him twice, he would make the right decisions this time, no one would die on his account.

"It's the Titans who are going to be afraid this time." He confidentially declared, he was ready for this.

Erwin began his speech to boost up the troops morals as the bells rang followed by the opening of the gate. This was it, time to show the Titans exactly what he could do; giving a kick in the flack of his horse with his heels and off he was, riding right behind Levi. The adrenaline beginning to pump through his body, he was hitching to kill some Titans.

He could hear the gate closing in the distance, always looking around for one of the giants through the abandon houses. Some growls and hurls could be heard alerting everyone that battle was coming as the troops began to split up into small groups. Eren quickly tugged on the right rein turning his horse towards the same direction his leader had taken. Erwin however had continued forward, his duty was to find a spot to get their camp set up so all the soldiers could resupply.

A loud crash filled the air as debris fell in front of Eren separating him from Levi; quickly looking up to find a seven meter Titan to his right and a duo of a eight meter and a fifteen meter to his left.

"Eren take care of the one on the right." Levi ordered as he flew into the air, drawing his blades to fight, launching his anchors towards the two Titans. Eren quickly complies, launches his anchors; flying through the air towards the seven meter, completely oblivious of Eren closing down towards him. Titans were really stupid creatures that deserved to die he thought to himself as he drew his blades a sliced the nape of the Titan's neck, landing on a nearby rooftop.

Eren quickly looks for the two other Titans, they were gone but he could see steam coming up towards where they had been. Without any delay, Eren launches his anchors towards where his corporal had gone. The dead bodies of the two Titans were starting to disintegrate; however, there was no sign of the short man.

Growls caught Eren's attention as another Titan came into view. This one was a measly three meter, nothing to worry much about; these ones had barely any sort of intelligence. So far they had been lucky, no aberrant had been spotted, he noticed several red flares being shot into the air but no black ones which was a good thing. Eren wasted no time in slaying the small Titan, there was still much more Titans to kill and he had to regroup with his leader not that he was worried or anything.

Another Titan and another kept showing up as his blades started to get low, his gas was also probably starting to be low also.

"Eren!"

Eren looked around for the voice, Armin standing on a nearby rooftop, he was kind of relief to see a familiar face, he had been alone for a while now. "Eren we should head to the encampment." His friend said, there was no way he was going to argue with that but something felt strange to him, something did not feel right but he did not linger on it, he would talk about it back with the corporal in the encampment.

"Did you get a good kill number?" He casually asked, Armin answered with a smile. Today was surely a good day, no aberrants and it seemed that they had received little casualties. Some injuries but it was not that bad. Mikasa quickly caught Eren's eye, he was relieved to see that she was okay and unhurt but she wore a rather gloomy expression, maybe things had not gone well on her end.

"Hey Mikasa!" He quickly joyfully greeted but did not receive the same. A grim expression plastered her face as she remained seated, refusing to look Eren as she looked to the ground.

"Hey what's wrong?" Armin asked with a worried tone as he sat next to the raven haired girl he had known for many years. She was always the strong one, seeing her filled with grief was not something he was used to seeing.

"I searched everywhere…" She said never looking at Eren with the shame that filled her as she looked at a piece of blood stained fabric she held in her hands. "I'm sorry…"

Eren remained frozen as his eyes starred at the cloth Mikasa held in her hands, he recognised it all too well but it could not be. Surely it was just a mistake, he can't be dead… Mikasa just missed him that's all, Levi probably just lost his cravat and it got dirty. Any moment now, Levi will show up, he would give his usual bored looked as if he cared of nothing.

"You mean?... Corporal…" Armin's voice was shaky as his voiced killed the silence that filled the air. Mikasa nodded her answer of which Armin could not bring himself to say as he looked around, not wanting to believe that their strongest soldier had fallen. Searching around, trying to find the short man but nothing.

Mikasa finally stood and handed the cravat to Eren, forcing herself to look at her adopted brother "The commander is aware but he did not say anything." Was all she could allow herself to say; not wanting to cry or show weakness.

Erwin's presence was quickly made apparent as he voiced out that they were to head back to the walls the moment everyone had finished resupplying.

Anger began to build up, he could not believe that Erwin would just abandon Levi like that without finding his body. He just did not accept that, as long he would not lay his eyes on a body, there was no way that he was dead. He refused to believe that Levi would fall to a bloody Titan, not him. "Commander! We can't leave now, Corp-"

"He's gone and that's final." Erwin quickly cut Eren off with a stern voice, Eren wanted to jump at his throat but allowed himself to cool down as he felt Armin hold onto his arm. He looked at the other Scouts, most of them wore a gloomy expression and some he could say shared the same feeling he had. How could they just abandon a comrade like that?

"I don't want to believe it either Eren but we can't stay here any longer. The fog will surely bring us some trouble if we stay any longer." His commander said with a gentler tone than earlier. He could not argue with that as he could see the fog in the distance, coming closer and closer by the minute. If they stayed, a lot of the troops could die and that was just not worth it just to look for one man.

Eren mounted on his horse when a black stallion caught his eyes, he knew that horse all too well. That's his corporal's horse, it was rather restless as a soldier pulls on the reins to make it follow. After a few struggles, the horse complies but would give a tug here and there. Eren understood how it must feel, even though it was just a horse, he often saw his corporal stroke the horse for no reason. On normal circumstances the horse would be put down, after so many years having the same rider, there was no way it would accept anyone else. It would be just a useless animal to feed but the commander had refused. Even though Erwin had decided that they should leave, he probably was just as conflicted by Levi's sudden death. The black horse Levi had called Black Tundra was the only piece of the corporal left.

Wall Rose came into view as they rode, he was never able to take his eyes off Black Tundra, and his corporal sat on him this very morning, now it was vacant. He had promised himself that he would not let any of his friends die today; why could he just not make the right decision. He should have looked for him instead of fighting that three meter. He should have prioritized that over killing those filthy beast; he forgot that Levi was also human capable of death. Because of his poorly made decision, he had managed to get everyone killed in the squad he had been placed, he had cursed them all.

The loud stone gate brought him back to reality, the villagers stood on the side of the street; eyeing for any missing faces. Words of disapproval followed like usual, it was not long before some asked for Levi and all got quiet. Not really sure if the people were just shocked but none of the Scouts answered their question, Eren fought back the tears that wanted to escape his eyes. Even though they had lost little lives, today was a great lost for humanity; not a body, not a proper funeral could be given to the man who had saved many lives and never asked for anything in return. The gate loudly shut, the echoing of the bells filled the air; usually they are only rang for going out or in the walls, it was probably the Garrison's way of saying that they also mourn the man who was Humanity's Strongest Soldier.

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**A new fanfic, review and tell me what you think.**


	2. Haunted

**This chapter turned out a little different than I had first planed but I enjoyed writing it.**

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Chapter 2 ~ Haunting

The HQ was relatively quiet, not even Hanji was herself; even though they often bickered and insulted each other on every chance they had, Eren never believed that they hated each other. On the contrary, he believed that there was something much more in their relationship, more than just fellow soldiers.

All of this grief could have been avoided if he had not messed up yet again. He endlessly tried to remember exactly what had happened; debris had fell causing them to split up just for a second and he was gone. Why did the corporal leave when he should have stayed closed to him, to watch him like he was supposed to. Eren was angry at Levi for being so foolish, it was no secret that he had injured his leg while he was trying to save him from Annie back on the 57th expedition. He had overheard the argument he had had with Erwin about going out with the injury, Levi had been able to argue himself a win and that was it. He limped a little but he never spoke much about it, he rather ignored it altogether. Eren should have known better than to let Levi face those two Titans alone, he should have taken those two while Levi would have dealt with the single one.

"What the fuck were you thinking Corporal?" He asked himself as he walked through the empty hallway towards his room, it was getting dark, he probably needed to get some sleep. Maybe he could get some sense out of what exactly had happened, had he been eaten alive? Where was his body?

Eren walked down the stone steps as he made his way to the basement and straight to his room, the only good thing about sleeping down there was that he slept alone, he did not have to listen to Jean with his ridiculous questions because he could not sleep nor did he had to listen to Connie laughing at Berthold's strange sleeping position all night long.

He opened the hard oak door, walked in and closed the door as he walked to his bed, the picture he had left on the bed was still there. Tears rolled down his face as he tooked it in his hands, his entire squad was really gone his eyes staring at the happy faces that he would never see again and unto that serious bored expression of his corporal. He was never really fond of pictures but accepted just to make the squad happy, not once did he ever ask for anything in return.

He wiped the tears with his free hand and placed the photo in the empty frame he had gotten but never took the time to actually do it until now. At least the frame would protect the picture, it was all he had left of them. He gave it one last look before going to bed and tries to get some sleep.

Images of blood filled his dreams, the blood of endless Titans being killed along with his comrades. Levi killing the giants like they were nothing, he screamed at the short man but he never looked at Eren, he was just getting further and further from him as he ran to catch up and then he was gone. His eyes jolted open, his heart beating like a drum; he sat on the bed to regain his breathe, at this rate he would never get some sleep. His eyes wondered through the dark room and he suddenly froze. The picture frame was empty, Eren quickly jumped on his feet in alarm; what the hell was going on he wondered as he looked for the picture and was relatively relieved when he found it on the floor right next to his night table. Had someone entered his room he wondered. No, that could not be it since the heavy door would have woken him up when it opened; maybe he had removed it in his sleep? Whatever it was, it was probably just a mistake, maybe he had thought he had placed the picture in the picture frame, yeah that was probably it, placing the picture back in the picture frame, this time making sure it was well placed before deciding to take a walk and get some fresh air. There was just no way he could sleep, his mind just would not let him, it raced like there was no tomorrow.

The hallway was faintly lit but not as quiet he had thought it be. It seemed he was not the only one who could not sleep. He could hear the familiar voice of his friends as he approached the dining room, they were all sitting at one of the tables, probably talking about the expedition.

"You guys can't sleep either?" He asks as he joined them at the table.

"No…" Jean answered, his head rested on his right arm, both spread on the table.

"Well I think I might be losing it." He dared say, they would probably think he was crazy but he had to tell what had happened with the picture, it was just rather weird.

"Maybe we all are but why would you say that Eren?" The blond boy asked

"I put a picture of the squad in the frame I bought the other day right before I went to bed. When I woke up, the frame was empty and the picture was on the floor. I know I put the picture in that frame." He said as he looked at his friends' expression. Jean mockingly ignored him, not that it surprised him at all but was amused when he heard a thug under the table as Jean flinched from the sudden pain he had received from the kick Mikasa had given him.

"Are you sure it was not someone playing a trick on you Eren?" Mikasa asked, shooting a menacing glance at Jean as he quickly responds. "Hey don't look at me! I'm innocent in all of this! Ouch, that hurt you know?"

"I'm sure, the door is so loud, and it never fails to wake me up." He answered, seeing Jean rubbing is leg was rather amusing as he switched his attention to the others.

"Maybe it is the Corporal's ghost telling you something…" The soft voice of Christa caught everyone's attention as she bared a confused look. "What? Was it something I said?" She asked with that same soft voice.

"You sure as hell come up with strange things!" Ymir responded as she held Christa in a tight hug.

"It was probably just a mistake Eren. We are all tired and you must be as well. All of that stress just confused you Eren." Armin answered, trying to change the mood. He probably was right Eren thought to himself, Armin was always the voice of reason but it still felt good talking about it with his friends. They ended up talking the rest of the night, no one being able to sleep, the topic of conversation shifted from Sasha's never ending appetite to Berthold's sleeping position. Jean kept teasing him about it, saying every time Berthold sleeps with his butt in the air, it was going to rain with some thunder.

"Of course there will be thunder, which will be from his farts." Connie shouted out as he gave a high five to Jean. Eren listened to the endless jokes his friends were making, they had not done this since they had been just meer trainees, it kind of felt good but it also reminded him of the Levi squad. They would often get into these comedic debates, everyone was happy back then too…

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Morning had come quickly enough, Eren had been tasked to clean the stables. He did not mind, he liked having an excuse to spend some time with the horses and he kind of wanted to see Black Tundra. He wondered how it was doing, on a normal day he would already be out on the field getting brushed by Levi. Black Tundra was just an animal but he knew the time of day, it was surely an intelligent animal, he wondered if he knew that he would probably never see his master again?

Eren wasted no time in cleaning, with the time he had spent in Levi's squad, he had learn how to do things quickly but neatly, little tricks here and there had surely been useful. Before he knew it, he was done; the horses had been taken out to the field already. Black Tundra was the only one who had been left in it's stable, he had been told that it had refused to move.

"Hey boy." Extending his hand to try and place it on its nose but it shook it's head violently at Eren's approach, quickly pulling it back to his chest.

"That animal should be put down." A voice behind caught him by surprise as Eren quickly turned around to meet one of the veterinarian. He was a middle aged man he had seen a few times but never had the chance to actually speak to. "It won't let anyone near it, you can say it's gotten mad." He said with a serious tone as he tried to get closer to the frantic animal without any success. "But the commander refuses to have it put down, I hope he changes his mind before someone gets hurt." He added before turning away to care for the other horses outside.

Eren tried again to extend his hand only to receive the same reaction from the horse. He wondered if Black Tundra had seen Levi get eaten by a Titan, maybe having him put down was really the best option as he looked at those large black orbs looking at him.

"Hey Eren, would you give me a hand?" Hanji's voice booming in the stable. Eren turned to face his superior and wasted no time joining her when suddenly a loud crash was made behind him. Hanji quickly pulled Eren out of the stable as Black Tundra had gone into a blinding rage losing its balance in the process resulting in the animal to roughly fall on its left side. The commotion had attracted many of the Scouts, Eren starred at the animal he had known as grand, now laying on the ground, seemingly unable to move. He wondered if it had injured himself in its rage.

"Eren did you do this?" Hanji ask as she carefully walked to the back of the stable, touching the wall to Eren's surprise there was a strange symbol that looked like a cross but the lines were curved carved in the wood. Hanji turned to face Eren with a concern expression as she added. "If you did this, you need help."

"No I did not do it. It was not there earlier." He quickly responded as he lifted his hands to chest level. "What does it mean Hanji?" He nervously asked, afraid of what she might say.

She turned to look at the symbol again a few seconds before turning away to see if Black Tundra was okay. "I've never seen such a symbol before." She answered as she crouched next to the large animal, placing her hands on the warm body as she petted it gently. It's breathing had calmed down as it stood up on all four and casually walked out of the stable like nothing had happened leaving everyone puzzled.

"What just happened?" Erwin asked as he ran to the damaged stable, looking at Hanji and then turning into the direction the others were looking at. Black Tundra was now acting like it usually does when Levi is around, just like nothing at happened at all.

Hanji stood on her feet and walked to her commander. "It's acting just li-"

"He's gone Hanji… Black Tundra must now have acknowledged that." His voice numbed and serious as he spoke. He would not hear of it as he walked away.

"Umm… Hanji…" Eren was out of words as he starred inside of the messed up stable, surely his eyes were playing tricks at him.

"What is it Eren?" She asked, her voice filled with fatigue as she turns to look at what Eren was looking at. Her eyes widen in shock, the strange cross that had been carved into the wall was gone.

"Spooky… I think I'm starting believe what Christa said. Maybe we are being haunted by Levi's ghost." Eren nervously blurted out, wasn't well received by Hanji though. "Ghosts are not real Eren. It's just our eyes playing tricks on us. We have work to do, we need to clear out Levi's belongings. Let's go."

Eren knew better than to argue with her and she was probably right he kept telling himself. He did not look forward into cleaning out his corporal's things out, it just did not feel right. He followed Hanji as they entered the old castle and through the hallway; his corporal's room was far to the right side of the castle with the rest of the squad leaders, all had their own individual rooms. Hanji opened the door, revealing the nice and tidy room of which was to be expected from his corporal. Everything was nicely placed, nothing was out of place, and it was almost freaky.

"I brought some empty chest, just put everything in them and we will sort things out later. I will be back in a few minutes." She ordered before exiting the room, leaving Eren alone.

He walked through the spacious room, making his way to the corporal's dresser, opening a drawer filled with clothes. Eren slid his hand on the fabric, it just felt weird as he took them with both hands and placed it neatly in the chest. He did this for the six drawers of the dresser filling one chest.

How much time had passed since he had started he could not tell, he had filled three chest of Levi's belongings, there was some old books and a few other stuff but other than that, his corporal did not have a lot of things. A photo album had caught Eren's attention when he was packing the stuff; it was filled with pictures of his old squad, all pictures taken within Wall Maria at the time. One Picture Eren liked the most, it was a picture of Levi with Black Tundra. He could tell that the picture had been taken by surprise, he did not wear that usual bored expression. Eren studied the background of the picture, trying to figure out exactly where within Wall Maria this picture was taken, there was a small waterfall behind Levi but he could not recall seeing any waterfalls when Wall Maria belonged to them.

Eren closed the photo album, he did not want to part with it as he took it with him to go get Hanji to tell her that he was done. Fortunately for him, he did not have to go far as she was walking back up the hall.

"Eren did you finish?" She asked in the familiar tone he knew from her.

"Yeah. Do you mind if I hold on to this?" He asks as he gives her the album. She quickly went through the pages and gave it back to Eren with a smile with her approval as she enters the room but suddenly stops.

"Eren, this is not funny. What did you do all afternoon?" She asked with an irritated tone.

"I packed the corporal's stuff just like you told me to." He answered impatiently, walking to Hanji only to have his stomach twist. All three chests were opened and empty, he quickly entered and opened the first drawer he had emptied. It was filled with the same clothes he had removed; the album dropped to the floor as he clenched to his hair backing away from the room.

"I emptied it all… I emptied it all…" Was all he could say as he bolted into a run leaving Hanji behind in confusion, he had to get out of this place, he needed some air. He could hear footsteps behind him as he heard someone call to him but he could not stop, he just needed to get out as he roughly opened the front door of the old castle as he walked mid-way towards the courtyard before he stopped.

He felt a hand on his shoulder turning his head to see who it was, the worried face of Mikasa. "Eren what's wrong?"

"I think I'm losing my mind." He said with a nervous tone as he recalled to her what had happened in the corporal's room and about the strange symbol he had seen in the stable but magically disappeared. Her facial expression suddenly became shocked, he knew that she believed him which brought him relief but it did not change that something strange was going on.

A creaking sound killed the silence as they looked towards the castle. The heavy hardwood oak door had lazily opened on its own. Eren and Mikasa looked at each other, both were nervous as they walked back to the castle, the door opening wider as if it wanted them to come back in...

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**Tell me what you think about this chapter. :)**


	3. The Clock is Ticking

**I had a hard time deciding on how to start this chapter. Thanks to those who sent me PM through here and Tumblr. There is slight mentions of religion in this chapter but nothing in specific so no need to worry.**

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Chapter 3 ~ The Clock is Ticking

The strange occurrence happening in the HQ was starting to be somewhat of a problem, as he was walking through the courtyard to clear his mind, he came upon Connie running like crazy to catch some of the Commander's paper work that had managed to escape his office. It would seem that the windows had opened on their own as the wind entered the room and caused the whole mess.

It was not the only strange thing going on around that time, several scouts have reported seeing a strange symbol. Sometimes the symbol vanished into thin not long after they had appeared and while others remained; he however, had never seen such a symbol before he could only call a wiggly cross.

He remembered what Eren had told him about how his picture had been found on the floor when it should have been in the picture frame the night before. Armin was starting to believe that maybe Eren was not completely crazy from the lack of sleep and the massive stress, something is definatly haunting them. He recalled how Black Tundra acted after he heard the violent commotion in the stable, it acted exactly as if Levi was right there in the field. He could have sworn the horse moved his head as if it wanted was there to rub its nose but it did not last long, after an hour Black Tundra returned to the stable on its own and refused to let anyone touch it.

"Arlert." A feminine voice booming behind him as he turned to face the usually energetic squad leader who had grown fatigued since the expedition.

"Yes." His right fist over his heart, he makes his best salute, even though he did not have to he just figured it be respectful to his joy he received a smile from the brown haired woman.

"No need for the salute. I need you to do something for me." She asks, handing a sheet of paper with the wiggly cross drawn on it. "I need you to find out what this symbol stands for." She added and walked away when Armin understood.

There was really just one place he could go to conduct his research, the HQ's library. It held many books that could not be found elsewhere, many were actually banned books to which he wondered how the Legion had even managed to get their hands on it. He recalled as he made his way through the hall when he had checked each spots the strange phenomenon had occurred this morning. The wood that had a carved symbol but magically fixed itself was smooth like exactly nothing had happened. There was a pot that had almost fallen on Jean's head, the dirty windows filled with wiggly crossed drawn on them were discovered by Sasha and countless more. It was clear that this was not just someone's idea of a joke, each of these mysterious sightings had been done almost simultaneously unless these were done by a group of people. He doubted that a human could make symbols just disappear.

Armin entered the quiet library, like usual no one ever was in here; just the sight of a book seemed to be enough to scare more than half the Scouting Legion members. He walked by the tall book shelves, inspecting each book one by one, hoping that something could be helpful. He passed books related to Titans and military subjects, he had after all already read them and not once did he ever see a wiggly cross and it hit him as he walked towards the book shelf with many banned books. He was certain that the wiggly cross being part of an old religion cult that had once been influential to humanity probably had the answer he was looking for.

He was rather astonished at the wide range of religion books there actually was as he took each one toped over the other until he needed to go place them unto a nearby table, not wanting to damage the books in case he would lose his balance and they would fall to the ground. He did another trip before he decided to go through each one, page by page. The first book Saint-Peter: Catechetical Discourses was surely a lucky pick, he adventured through each page as he saw multiple types of cross symbols, it is only a matter of time until he would find the one he needed. As he went through each one, he was surprised just how many different types of cross symbols there were once in the past each seemed to symbolise something entirely different but in a common way, he had to control the urges to read about each of them; there was just no time, he could not waste so foolishly as he forced himself to continue but he surely would come back to read them when he could.

The lighting in the library had changed since he had gotten there, the sun now shone an orange tone through the library windows. He had not noticed how the time had flown as he had sunked deep into his research but all had been for nothing as the books he had found did not contain that wiggly cross. He was rather disappointed, he wanted to be able to give an answer to Hanji and give some peace and mind to Eren.

All he could do now was to place the books back in their prior places, taking each book back to the old bookshelf, he was sure that this would have worked. Other than old religion books, he really could not think about what this particular cross could be about, he had even spotted a book about spirits, how a deceased soul often cannot find peace and there for cannot rest and lingers in the world of the living. He wondered about what Christa had said last night, how the corporal's ghost is haunting the HQ, maybe it was not crazy after all.

In the book Life After Death he had read by parts, animals are often sensitive to supernatural activities, they can see things that we humans can't and they can also hear sounds that are impossible to hear to the human ear. If this was truly true, this would explain Black Tundra's strange behavior. The black stallion could probably see his lost master, the ghost of the corporal was probably stroking the horse's nose but why would the corporal be haunting his comrades? If it was true that people who cannot find peace, what on earth could be holding Levi bound to this world?

"Armin!" The sharp voice of Eren caused him to get out of his thoughts. He was accompanied by Mikasa however both seemed out of breath and were rather spooked.

"Did something happen?" He asked as he walked to his friends who had stayed at the entrance of the library.

"Yeah! I've been putting the corporal's things away all afternoon, when I was done I left the room for like a second and everything just went back to their original places." Eren nervously said as his voice seemed to have a panicky tone in it. "And just now the large hardwood oak entrance door just opened by itself and as we got closer to the door it opened wider like whatever is haunting us wanted us to get back inside and then it shut the moment we got in." He added who was desperately trying to keep his sanity in check.

"Calm down Eren. I think Christa might have been right last night." Armin quickly says as he places his hand on Eren's shoulder. "I think the corporal is trying to tell us something. I think he wants us to go to the cross, I know this just sounds crazy but the symbol must mean something." He added now realizing really just how crazy he did just sound.

"What were you doing here anyway Armin?" Mikasa ask, pulling her red scarf closer to her nose.

"Hanji asked me to try and find out about the symbol but I did not find anything at all." He answered with a sigh, he was really hoping that when he would have left the library, he would have had the answers he was looking for.

"Do you really think that maybe the corporal wants us to go the cross? Where is that?" Eren asked as they all walked down the hall, looking at Armin, waiting for an answer.

"I don't know." Was all he could say when all of sudden he just remembered he had left a book in the library he had wanted to read later. He told Eren and Mikasa to go on ahead and he would meet them in the dining room afterwards as he turned around and sped back to the library. His eyes trailed to the table he had used all afternoon, the book right where he had left it; he wasted no time to pick it up and returned to the hallway when all of a sudden a door violently swung opened. Armin looked at the barely lit room, frozen as he felt a cold chill sweep behind him.

Armin swallowed what felt like a large lump stuck in his throat as he cautiously walked inside of the barely lit room. The room was filled with endless rolled-up sheets of paper which he recognised as expedition maps. Each was neatly placed in a shelf and a single table right in the center was filled with several maps that still needed to be placed away among other things.

"What exactly are you trying to say corporal." He asked to the emptiness of the room as he looked around. He felt silly to speak at nothing, not like anyone would tell him what he wanted to know. Armin looked at the small window, the sun's light was almost gone as it slowly started to disappear behind Wall Rose, he should be going, if he did not go to the dining room soon, he would have to wait for morning until he could have his next meal.

A soft sigh escaped his throat as he turned around, a picture tacked on a pin board caught his attention. It was a picture of the Operation Squad; Erd and Gunther were sitting at a picnic table, Auruo seemed to be talking to the corporal while Petra looked like she was stroking Black Tundra on the nose. He looked at it curiously when he realized that this must have been a room used by the squad itself for meetings and storing things concerning expeditions, his eyes always stuck on that picture, why he could not say but there was something about it that he just could not put his finger on it.

"Why did you bring me here corporal?" He asked to the silence.

Raddling of the single window quickly caught his attention as it violently opened allowing the wind to enter, maps and other random papers scattering all over the place when one caught his attention. A folded map, the only one that had remained on the wooden table, he placed the old book on the corner of the table and unfolded the map. The initial E.J were inscribed on them, it looked like a map of a section of Wall Maria, from what he could tell, it looked like the south-east part of Wall Maria. This must have been used when the Trost District was the relay start point for the Scouting Legion's expeditions, all that hard work had come to nothing in meer seconds when the Colossal Titan destroyed the gate and had to be permanently sealed shut.

It then hit him like a flash as he scanned the map and there it was, not too far from where they had been on the 58th expedition. So that is what he had to figure out, he… They had it all wrong as he quickly takes the map in his hands and removes the picture from the pin board, leaving his book behind as he ran down the hall. The answer had been ever so simple but he was so absorbed into something so complex that he forgot to look inside the box for once. Everything now made perfect sense but how much time they had left was the only thing he was worried about.

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**Finally chapter 3 is done. Review what you think about it and I hope you all like it.**


	4. The Rock That Never Joined

**Thanks to all those who have reviewed and I am happy that so many actually like this fanfic so thank you for actually taking the time to read it. Here finally is chapter 4, I had a hard time deciding on how to start it, I'm satisfied on how it turned out enjoy!**

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Chapter 4 ~ The Rock That Never Joined

His eyes often wandered off his work as they stared at the empty seat his corporal would… Should be sitting there like usual as he would watch him do his paper work; Levi had never been very fond of the written stuff as he would always try to avoid it. The raven haired man would often try to get Erwin to do his reports for him in a shrewd way, much to his surprise he would succeed way too often. A smile formed on his face as he remembered all those distant memories that were not so old, no matter what Levi did or said you just could not bring yourself hate the young man; there was just something about him that just made Levi loveable even if he was just an underground city trash. To Erwin, Levi had been much more than just a soldier or a comrade, he was the younger brother he never had and he failed him.

The pounding of the rain unto the windows of his office caught his attention, the wind had recently picked up. It would seem a storm was brewing in the darkness, even the heavens weep in anger for Levi; he would have forced him to stay behind if he knew that this would have happened he should have known better than to allow an injured man go into Titan territory.

"You always had to argue with me…" Erwin said to himself as he rested his forehead onto his clenched fists, elbows on his oak desk.

He stared at the paperwork he had finally managed to finish a few minutes ago; he should have had it done hours ago in all honesty; his mind kept wandering off into his memories. Recalling how he had met Levi in that hole, he had to admit Levi had come a long way since that day, many had called him crazy for bringing trash into the Scouting Legion but it did not take too long before they changed their opinion when they saw him in action, when they finally realized that he too was human and not some worthless piece of trash. A man from the slums had climbed from the ashes and became an important figure for humanity, something that had never happened before.

"You really were something Levi…" He said to himself as he stood up, pacing in his office out of meer frustration with himself. How did Levi fall he wondered, the one question that always continued to surface in his mind. Did Levi die quickly and painless or did he slowly die in agony? Could there have been a chance that Levi had still been breathing when they left to return to the wall or was it already too late?

Some of the soldiers had come to him in the morning asking what they could do for a funeral, many felt that Levi deserved one, that he should have a grand ceremony to respect what he had done for Humanity. He could not give an answer to their demands, to Erwin without an actual body to touch and see, how anyone could properly mourn at a funeral. There would be nothing there to look and give final respects to.

A bolt of lightning flashed the dark sky as it illuminated through his windows in a flash, this was sure going to be one hell of a storm he thought to himself, shifting his gaze to his desk where a list of strange occurrences had been reported by his troops throughout the day. The list was not relatively short; many believed that their decease corporal was now residing on the HQ grounds, haunting the personnel. He could not deny what had been reported as just a tired soldier's mind playing tricks on them, too many with the same sightings could not be argued with. Maybe Levi was truly haunting them, an angry soldier who got left behind on the field of battle.

"It's me you should be haunting… Not the men…" He said, a sigh escaped his throat as he returned his attention to the windows, watching the branches of the trees dance in the wind violently, the leaves holding on for dear life.

The only experience he had received was his windows suddenly opening however that was partly his fault, he had not locked them and with the windy day they had, it was a given. He honestly did not believe that it had been the cause of a strange phenomenon; he had not seen the strange symbol his men had been describing all day. Some called it a strange wiggly cross and others called it a bent cross, either way it was something he did not want to bother himself with, he had much more pressing matters to focus on.

It did not take long for Levi's death to reach the ears of central, getting approvals for upcoming expeditions outside the walls could become very troublesome, worst case scenario the Scouting Legion could be disbanded. The disbandment of the Legion was more unlikely since they had lost Wall Maria, their power on the government had been stronger in the last five years but now they had lost a man who equaled an entire brigade that could cause problems in the future. With Levi's presence on the field, he had managed to save many lives and his efforts had caused the Legion to remain strong against anyone who would speak against it.

Words had reached his ears that many in central had placed the blames upon him, saying that his inadequate leadership was the cause of the death of Humanity's Strongest Soldier and the time for a new Commanded should be needed. On the other side, many supported him for being too important to remove from his position; the Scouts would never allow it.

"You never were a fan of politics…" He spoke to the silence of his office as rain drops hit the window. He looked at the clock on his wood mantel, six forty three; it honestly felt much later than what he had thought, time sure past slowly. It was only after losing Levi that he realized just how much of an impact he truly had on his everyday life, now he just did not know what to do with himself. Every night they had a custom to play chest, Levi had never managed to win once against him but he was improving every time they played, Erwin was certain that it was only a matter of time until he would have receive a defeat from the young man. Teaching Levi how to play chest had been a comedic session in trying to explain every piece, he had a hard time to remember each specific piece's abilities but with patience he became quite good to the point of being able to beat Mike. Mike after all was an accomplished tactician in his own right, for him to be defeated in a game of strategy was a good accomplishment for Levi…

Levi would have become a great commander when his time would have been up, Erwin was certain that the young man would have been better than he had been. Instead the young perished and the old linger in a world where even more youth will succumb to death; the world was without any doubt a cruel place, not that it had changed due to the Titans' appearances, it always has been cruel. Humans were simply just blind or refuse to admit the grim truth, humans are cruel creatures.

A clang on the floor drew his eyes to his feet. His emerald medallion had fallen off its cord; it had been handed to him by the former commander Keith Shadis once he himself became the new commander. This emerald had seen a lot and had been worn by multiple people; it was only a matter of time it would just let go.

Erwin crouch to pick up the jewellery, checking for signs of damage to his surprise there was none. The clap that attached to the cord was still in perfect condition as he clasped it back in its former position and replaced it back around his neck and pulled himself back up when he came face to face with a blonde haired woman dressed in the standard Scouting Legion uniform, staring right at him from outside the window causing him to bolt backwards in shock, he closed his eyes and re-opened them only to find that she was no longer there.

He looked around the office, his heart was racing in his chest, his breathing was fast and hard and his mind was going on a fast speed. He no longer was thinking as he opened the door to his office and exited on a steadfast paste. Now he understood what was going on, he was filled with grief that he stopped thinking, how could he have been so ignorant and foolish, he had now made up his mind, it did not matter what central would say, they were heading back out to Titan territory and he would not come back empty handed…

* * *

The crisp smell of food filled the dining room as Eren and Mikasa sat with Hanji and Mike. Their friends had already eaten dinner by the time they had arrived but it was not every day they got the chance to have a chat with the seniors, it changed the mood once in a while and right now, Eren really did not mind that they had missed the group, he was in no mood to endure Jean's annoying sarcasm again.

"I forgot exactly how much work Levi's squad actually did here." Hanji reflected as she took a sip from her mug. "I'm exhausted…" She added, catching a smirk from Mike.

"Did you try to re-put away the corporal's stuff?" Eren dared asked, he knew that he shouldn't have though but he was curious if she did redo what he should have done which he did do to his frustration.

"No, I got out of there right after you left." She answered with a wary voice. "I could have sworn that there was someone else in the room." She added with a grim expression plastered on her face as she continues. "There were more of those strange symbols on the windows too…"

"Talking about those symbols. I've seen them before, I just can't recall where." The bearded man says as he tries to remember exactly where he had seen that very symbol they had been seeing all day. He hated when he knew something but just could not put his finger on it; it would just drive him mad.

"Anyway, here Eren, you dropped this. I figured you would want it." Hanji said as she handed Eren the photo album. Eren reached out for the brown leather cover, the album itself had seemed like it had been given as a gift to Levi.

"Hanji, do you know when these pictures were taken?" Eren asked as he continued looking at the pictures.

Hanji gave a quick look and a soft smile followed as she answered. "That was actually exactly where we had gone on our last expedition Eren. There was a village girl following Levi and his squad all day just taking pictures." She let out a giggle as she continued. "It came to the point that Levi was growing impatient but he was pretty surprised when she handed him the album of pictures at the end of the week. It was her way of saying thank you for all the sacrifices he had done."

"I had no idea this was the exact same place. What happened to the girl?" He asked as he closed the album and placing his attention on Hanji whose face had lost her smile.

"She died a few months later. She had been sick for many years and her illness finally took her." She answered, taking another sip from her mug. "I think it is one of the reasons why Levi held on to it for these past few years." She added making the effort to form a soft smile.

"Eren! Mikasa!" The voice of Armin echoed through the dining room. Eren quickly turned his attention to his friend; he was out of breath as he ran to them spreading a map on the table while pushing their trays.

"Armin what is it?" Eren asked, not really sure what his friend was out of breath about and what was it with that map he wondered as he took his tray and placed it on a nearby table.

"Look." Was all that Armin managed to say as he tried to catch his breath, placed his finger on the map.

Eren looked as his eyes widen, there it was the symbol they had seen all day, the very symbol Hanji had tasked Armin to research about but was unable to find anything was actually found on a field map.

"That's not all I found. Look at this." Armin handed the picture of the Levi squad he had took, Eren gave a puzzled look much to Armin's annoyance. He would have to draw Eren a picture just for him to understand something ever so simple. "We had it all in reverse. It's not the corporal who's been haunting the place and it was not him that Black Tundra saw this morning."

"What are you trying to say Armin?" Eren asked he hated when Armin did not just go right to the point; reading between the lines was just not his strong point.

Frustration filled his small body as he glared at Eren. "Eren! Petra is the one haunting us not Levi. Look proof is in this picture; she wants us to go to the wiggly cross right there. Whatever it may mean, she wants us to go right there and she is becoming desperate."

Eren starred at the picture for a second, Armin was right and now that he thought about it, Petra was the only one other than the corporal who would allow to be touched by. He lifted his eyes towards Mike who had gotten up on his feet and was inspecting the map, probably trying to figure out exactly where the location of the wiggly cross was located.

It did not take long before a smirk formed on Mike's face as he starred at the map. "It's a waterfall marking." He said with confidence as he continues. "If I'm not mistaken that's exactly where we were too? Hanji?"

Hanji observed the map to give a second opinion and confirmed what her colleague had presumed, taking another sip from her mug as she takes the photo album and quickly scans the pictures until she finds the one she was looking for. "That's the waterfall marked on the map." She declares as she points to the picture of Levi with Black Tundra. Eren remembered that he had liked that picture the most when he had saw it the first time but even though they had been there only two days ago, he did not recall seeing a waterfall.

"I did not see a waterfall." He said as he looked at Hanji who had a large grin on her face as she spoke. "That's because it had not rain in a while but with the rain we are having tonight, we should be able to see the waterfall in its glory."

"So this is what we have to do…" Eren thought to himself but even if Petra wanted them to go to the waterfall, how could they? Without authorisation from the commander, well more to say without the authorisation from central they were not allowed to go outside the walls. If Petra was really the one haunting them, did that mean that Levi might still be alive?

Footsteps brought Eren out of his reveries as he saw the commander enter the dining room, he wore a serious expression as he spoke. "Hanji! Mike! Get the gears ready. We are heading out first thing at dawn." Without another word, the commander turned around and walked away. Eren felt a fire burn inside him; he thought he would never hear Erwin give them the order for sortie. Hanji and Mike had already bolted out of the dining room, preparing for another expedition and telling anyone they could find. Eren looked at both his friends, both were just as determined as he was, this time they would not fail, they would come home with Levi, there was no more room for errors.

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**This brings end to chapter 4. I hope you all enjoyed it.**

**Review and tell me how you liked it or if there are things I could improve.**


	5. I'm Still Here

**Sorry for the long wait, I had some unexpected things come up and the chapter got delayed. Well here it is, enjoy ;)**

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Chapter 5 ~ I'm still here

She had never thought for a second how much Levi would be hurting if anything had ever happened to her or the squad. She had come to know him as a hard hearted man who never showed his emotions; he handled death quite well which was probably the reason why he was such a good soldier but she never thought that he would be mourning their deaths every day since their departure.

Death had not been like she had thought it would be, she did not find peace or rest after getting crushed she instead lingered in the world watching over her corporal as he had saved Eren from the Female Titan. At least they had not died in vain and Levi could do what they could not in a group, not that it surprised her but the sorrow that filled Eren afterwards had been enough to break her heart, she had sat next to him as they had returned to the wall trying in some way to help ease his pain but to no avail, he could not see her… He could not hear her… He could not feel her… She was nothing…

Death was much crueler than living; when she was alive at least she could help rid the sadness and sorrow that had plagued her comrades… Now she could only watch… Watch her father approach her corporal, telling him of the love she had for him but could never bring herself to say it to the man… Watching as her father's heart crushed when he realized that she did not come back… The world was cruel but she was not alone, even in death they still remained together, the least it made the pain seemed more bearable.

Petra lingered the many days that passed, it was not long before they captured the Female Titan but to no avail, the large amount of damage done and the deaths had no reward when Annie crystalized herself in a large crystal. With so much death nothing new had been learned, the enemy could not be interrogated but the fact that they had still manage to capture a rogue Titan Shifter, this the least allowed the Scouting Legion to resume its operation and Erwin Smith had been cleared of all charges he had been accused of.

It had been decided that the Scouts were to go on a new expedition, this time it was simply to clear a path in hopes of reaching Shingashina District. She watched Levi who had been struggling since he had returned to the wall; his injury was causing him great discomfort. It had been two weeks since that day, the injury showed no signs of healing. Even though he was in pain, he still had managed to argue himself into the expedition.

She walked to him and pressed her hands on his chest as he went to stand up from the chair he had been sitting on but to no avail as he walked right through her. She would give anything just to be able to touch him, anything just to say one word.

"Oi Levi! Are you ready?" The eccentric voice of Hanji filled the room, Petra turned to face the taller woman all geared up and wasted no time in helping Levi gear up as well. She surely would not miss putting on all those straps, it was already a challenge to put, and she could only imagine the struggle Levi must be having with his injury.

"You should not be going at all you stubborn man!" Petra yelled out but to no success as she watched her seniors walk away; Levi suddenly stopped in the door frame, turned to look back into the room, his eyes scanning the place as if he was looking for something before turning away and he was gone.

She nervously followed Levi as he did what he normally does before an expedition, prepare his horse and make a last minute check up on his 3DMG before turning his attention to Eren's horse prepping it by putting the harness and saddle on. Hanji had joined her squadron by the time he was finished, mounting his horse taking Eren's with him and rode towards the younger man who was accompanied by Mikasa.

Petra kept her distant as she listened to the trio's conversation, the young girl wanted to accompany Levi and Eren for the expedition. In her mind she would echo yes several time but her heart sunk as her corporal refused and galloped away with Eren.

"You idiot…" Her voice was shaky but she did not want to cry, she should not have to suffer anymore but she was, watching her makeshift family ride off to the death trap before deciding to follow.

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Watching Levi fight was always a heart wrenching process, even when she was alive. The falling debris would have been enough to make her have an heart attack but like usual he was okay and wasted no time in killing the two Titans before shifting his attention to another one a little further.

"Corporal! Wait! Don't leave Eren behind!" She yelled as she followed Levi. The dark haired man suddenly stopped as he looked around as if he was searching for something but quickly shrugged it off as he advanced towards a fourteen meter titan.

Like usual, Levi had no trouble in killing it. Maybe she was just worrying too much, he had always been fine and that was probably never going to change. The man never feared death, at times Petra felt like he yearned for it.

"Hey! Don't be reckless!" The voice of Levi suddenly drew her attention; he was going further and further from Eren towards a strange behaving Titan. Petra looked back at Eren in the distance; he was doing fine as he attacked a small Titan about three meters quickly deciding to follow Levi, Eren would be alright when suddenly a loud crash and screams produced behind her.

Debris fell on the empty street, the dead Titan slowly starting to evaporate. She scanned the area, what had happened she kept asking herself when she saw a figure anchored on the side of a high building. "You should not be in this part." Petra yelled trying to grasp unto the younger girl's shoulders but again she passed right through as Mikasa launched her anchors and flew off.

The raven haired girl was frantic as she flew in the air to one building and then to another before taking a stop in the empty street. Petra joined Mikasa, her eyes glued unto what she had picked up on the ground for she knew it all too well. It was Levi's cravat covered in blood and dust but where was he?

"Corporal!" Mikasa yelled as she took on a run, tears rolling down her cheeks.

Before she knew, Petra had begun to search for her former corporal to her relief it did not take her too much time to find him and yet her heart sunk when she looked at his unconscious body. He had been injured but it was not life threatening, he must have lost conscious moments after entering the small cavern in order to protect himself from Titans, he must have known he was in trouble so he hid but what is really the best option as she turned back her attention to Mikasa who had gotten further.

* * *

How could they leave? Petra kept asking as she desperately tried to gain the attention of her comrades. They could not leave, Levi was still alive, he was there and he needed help. How could Erwin just abandon him without searching as tears formed in her eyes, how could this world be so cruel? She was not supposed to be feeling pain after death, she was supposed to be able rest in peace and not worry and be sadder.

The rebellious Black Tundra caught Petra's attention as he kept pulling on the rein; it was looking towards her as if it was trying to reach her. She moved to the right and the animal followed with his black eyes "Can you see me?" She asked as she watched the animal struggle but eventually gave in.

"What do we do?" The voice of Erd next to her but she could not stop starring at Black Tundra, she knew what they had to do, they had no choice but one thing was certain in her mind, she was not going to let Levi die in a place like this.

"We get them to come back." She answered.

"You guys get them back here; I will keep our corporal safe." Gunther replied as he turned away back to the cave.

Without wasting any time, they quickly made their way back to the walls. One of the ups of being a ghost was how fast they could travel in a blink of an eye, Petra now knew that an animal could see them, it was just a matter of time before they figured out how to make their presence known to humans even if it would be the last thing she would do they would come back, Levi would not be left behind.

* * *

It was much easier said than done, all day Petra had been following Eren. Trying to get him to notice her, at times she was sure she had succeeded but the young man would just shrugged it off and resume what he had been doing. At the end of the day, she had done no progress, frustration starting to build as she watched Eren sob looking at their old picture before putting it away in a photo frame and going to bed. Petra looked at the picture as she reached her hand to touch it, the frame was smooth just like she had expected from the glossy wood. Her eyes widen in shock when it finally sunk in, she was able to touch the object with satisfaction. If she could not get Eren to notice her, she would do it indirectly. "The guys should be able to do it too…" She told herself as she removed the picture and dropped it to the floor.

Eren suddenly woke up; he was probably having a nightmare she thought to herself as she makes her way out of the room. The sound of Eren quickly getting out of bed drew a smile on her face; he had noticed the picture was gone, he would notice much more than that before she was done. She only hoped that they could put the message before it was too late.

The rest of the night, the group played with various objects in the HQ. At first it was hard, if they did not concentrate enough, their bodies would go through but by the end of the night, the trio were satisfied with their manipulation but they would definatly have to take it up a notch. None of the scouts were listening, most believed that their eyes had played tricks on them.

The next day, Petra and Erd wandered the courtyard. Trying to think of how to get attention when they got an idea and went through the stable causing the black stallion that had remained in the stable to go into a mad rage; not that they had planned I thought but in a way it did get the attention they had wanted. Erd took the opportunity to carve the waterfall symbol on the back wall as she took Black Tundra's attention out of the stable. Whispers filled the air as the commander came in a run to see what had happened, exchanged a few words and left with an uneasiness. Auruo had already played a few tricks on the commander already, opening his office window and among other petty things.

"Umm… Hanji…" Eren spoke in the distance, catching Petra's attention away from Black Tundra.

"What is it Eren?" Hanji asked with a tired tone as she turned to see what Eren was looking at.

"Spooky… I think I'm starting believe what Christa said. Maybe we are being haunted by Levi's ghost." Eren nervously blurted out, wasn't well received by Hanji though. "Ghosts are not real Eren. It's just our eyes playing tricks on us. We have work to do; we need to clear out Levi's belongings. Let's go."

"Then I will have to make you believe in ghost squad leader." Petra told herself as she followed the duo into the old castle, leaving Erd to continue out in the courtyard by himself. It always felt weird following her comrades ever since she was no more, it was not something she would have done when alive but now even though it was a normal thing to do for a ghost, it still felt strange to her.

The wing that the squad leaders occupied was quiet, as expected but come to think about it, she had never gone to this part. None of them ever had to go wake Levi in the morning or did they ever go to his quarters at all. Seeing where Levi slept was more than just strange, the room itself was clean as expected from her corporal. He never liked to be in a dirty room but even then everything was perfectly in order. Nothing was misplaced. If she had not known better, she would have thought it was a woman's quarter.

"I brought some empty chest, just put everything in them and we will sort things out later. I will be back in a few minutes." Hanji ordered as she made her way out passing right through Petra.

The rest of the afternoon was rather a boring one as she watched Eren put the corporal's things away in the wooden chests. The young man took his time placing everything neatly away; a few times here and there he would pause and reflect. He did this more than he should have until he was all done making the room seem bigger for some reason. Petra stood beside him as he looked through a photo album to which she recognised immediately. She reminiscent the old memories, those were sure the good old days, it was the first year the squad had been formed, a lot had changed since then.

The album closed snapping her out of her reveries as Eren left the room. Now was her chance, quickly opening the chests and replacing everything back to where they used be before being packed. It took less time than she had thought, she often forgot being a ghost she actually moved much faster than the living when she had another idea. She started making waterfall marks on the windows, if that did not get anyone's attention than nothing will. She could hear Eren talking in the hallway, the voice of Hanji came to her ears. "Show time." She told herself as she stood starring at the door waiting to see their expression.

Hanji was the first to pop inside, her joyful face suddenly turned annoyed with an irritated tone in her voice as she spoke. "Eren, this is not funny. What did you do all afternoon?"

"I packed the corporal's stuff just like you told me to." Eren answered impatiently as he entered and stood next to Hanji. His eyes glued on the three chests that were now opened and empty, he quickly walked to the dresser and opened the first drawer he had emptied. It was filled with the same clothes he had removed; the album dropped to the floor as he clenched to his hair backing away from the room.

"I emptied it all… I emptied it all…" Was all he could say as he bolted into a run leaving Hanji behind in confusion who had been starring at the window filled with the wiggly cross. A smile grew on Petra's face, maybe she had over done it a little but in a way she was rather satisfied with how it turned out.

"Do you believe in ghost now squad leader?" Petra asked as she watched Hanji reach for the album that Eren had dropped and made her way out quickly.

Petra watched from the window, Eren was outside along with Mikasa. That girl had never told anyone that she had been the cause of Levi's disappearance; she wanted to slap the girl for being so foolish, for disobeying orders. If it had not been for Mikasa, Levi would not be lying in a cave dying. Her eyes caught Erd returning from the courtyard, she felt no need to go join Eren down there; it was time to try her luck with Erwin. Even if she could send her message to the scouts, all would be useless if the commander did not give permission to sortie.

* * *

This storm had her worried; she wondered how Levi was doing. Of course she could make her way back to the cave but that would not sit too well with Gunther. The drop in temperature was not something they needed, not for Levi that is. She had passed Auruo and Erd as she made her way to the commander's office. Erd had told her that he was convinced that he had finally been able to give the message to the new recruit Armin much to her delight.

It was much harder to haunt someone when they did not believe in ghost or the supernatural. She tried from time to time to misplace certain things but Erwin never noticed. She could see that the man was restless as he paced up and down in his office, often he would look out the window and talk to himself in mumbled words she hardly could understand.

Petra stood in front of her commander, her eyes on the emerald medallion when she had an idea and quickly unclasp the medallion, letting it fall to the ground at the man's feet. Erwin's eyes went down to the sound and crouch to pick up the jewellery, checking for signs of damage probably before he refasten the medallion back to the cord and replaced it back around his neck and pulled himself back up when he suddenly backed away in panic much to Petra's surprised. He looked around the office; his breathing was fast and hard. By his action she could tell that he was no longer thinking as he opened the door to his office and exited on a steadfast paste.

"Did you see me?" Petra asked herself as she quickly followed her commander, the panic face he had only a few seconds ago had disappeared and now he bared a serious expression. She could not tell what the man was thinking; she never could even in death. The only thing that she cared was that Levi strongly believed in Erwin that had always been enough for her.

Voices caught her attention. The voice of Hanji and Eren in the distance came from the dining room. It must have been what Erwin was looking for as he headed straight there. The man's presence quickly took the attention of his soldiers.

"Hanji! Mike! Get the gears ready. We are heading out first thing at dawn." Erwin ordered.

A sense of relief filled her at the orders. She watched her commander walk away and the squad leaders quickly jump on their feet to prepare to go out. It took a while but finally, they had succeeded.

* * *

**I felt I needed to add a chapter about them lol. Feel free to give out a review ;)**


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